Momentum: The Leadership Journey at Harley-Davidson

by John Volkmann and Ron Ricci

Argues that the unique features of digital products - and of consumer goods that contain digital components - force customers to consider the viability of the company behind the solution to their... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 157851522X
• ISBN13: 9781578515226
• Release Date: October 2002
• Publisher: Harvard Business Review Press
• Length: 1 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.5" x 8.7"

Customer Reviews

The Power of Thought Leadership

The technology industry is presently going through a structural shift -- not merely a cyclical downturn. In an attempt to meet the increasing demands of customers, many or most companies in the industry's various fields are struggling to sell something more than products. Market leaders are selling frameworks, roadmaps and solution sets. They are selling ideas -- and trying to earn back lost trust in the process. That's critical. The technology industry is in the midst of an extraordinary backlash. Its full revival depends on winning back this trust. Ron Ricci and John Volkmann have written a timely and extremely readable book that outlines these trends and dynamics -- and then offers prescriptive solutions to guide forward-looking executives in the digital realm. As the authors point out, companies must differentiate themselves in "the markeplace of ideas" if they are to become "unstoppable" in the coming years. That means they must engage the minds and elicit the participation of their customers, partners and other parties; not overwhelm them with slick propaganda and manipulative sales techniques. As Ricci and Volkmann demonstrate, smart companies now realize they must develop customers and influential networks, not merely develop new products and "release" them to a confused marketplace. If there is one concept in the book that is worthy of debate it is the idea of heavily promoting the "CEO's vision." This is unquestionably a powerful way of "communicating existing, and sometimes complex, ideas about possibilities, new innovations and new models" to prospective customers and other key parties. However, in this day and age, CEOs can fall from grace quite easily. If too much of the company's brand is invested in a single individual, it runs a risk that at least deserves further consideration. Why not "scale" the vision of an entire executive team -- or depersonalize the effort altogether? Clearly, there are trade-offs to be assessed. That said, I highly recommend this book as a seminal contribution to an emerging field: thought leadership marketing. Ricci and Volkmann have built an effective case -- based on both qualitative and quantitative insights. They have demonstrated the power that ideas, trust and market-driven value will play in the next economy.

A Must Read For Any Company that Plans to Grow

A must read for any company that plans to grow - whether a large multinational conglomerate or a small start up. At its heart, I believe, the book is about creating a growth platform for the company - a compelling value proposition that its customers demand; a motivating vision against which its employees can execute; and a strategic direction that investors and shareholders can comfortably expect. Ron Ricci and John Volkmann cleverly use basic principles of physics to argue that it is not just the speed of change that matters but the overall momentum that a company can generate in the marketplace. The lessons in the book are particularly relevant in today's networked world as companies look to leverage their extended enterprise for breaking away from their industry peers. While the authors use several high tech company examples to illustrate their message, this book is equally applicable in almost every industry. In Pharmaceutical companies looking to carve out therapeutic categories or financial service companies looking to partner in wealth management will find the messages relevant. Personally I found the book a very entertaining read - clear, easy to comprehend yet provocative.

Reality Divided by Logic Always Leaves a Remainder

The authors deal openly with a tough topic- technology & network products (and for this reason 5 stars). I found a great deal of usable information, and recommend it for its overview on issues related to defending, supporting, or defeating the dominant position in a product category. By specifically addressing the issue of predictability and what can be known about future sales, it directs the business persons' attention to key aspects of their own business that would be useful to research and change. The title indicates that it might have some useful "business cookbook" step-by-step recipes. Thankfully, it does not (and where it gets a little precriptive it isn't too much). It wasn't clear to me whether the authors were comfortable with this- experts like being prescriptive. However, with all of us now looking at uncertain futures, predictive tools and ideas on improving likely outcomes are so much more useful and believable than prescriptive methods. It is always that remainder which is left when reality is divided by logic that keeps me awake thinking.

Required reading for technology marketers

This book picks up where Good to Great and others stop, delving into practical formulas for leadership that should be required reading for every student of marketing. It presents a refreshingly concrete and quantifiable strategy for achieving the ephemeral goal of brand leadership that so many dot-bubble companies strove for and clearly never attained. The case studies of IBM, HP, Oracle, SAP and others illustrate clearly and in real terms how enduring technology leaders build and sustain momentum. And the insider's view Cisco's own march to market dominance is engaging - and essential - reading for anyone in the technology market today.

Sound advice for digital product producers and sellers

"Momentum: How Companies Become Unstoppable Market Forces" focuses on the most important questions in marketing:What motivates a purchaser to actually buy?When competing products appear similar how do they decide which to purchase?In the area of digital products there are additional questions that rise out of basic characteristics of the industry itself. For example, digital products come and go so quickly that the consumer must make a decision as to which companies they believe will exist in the next few years. After all, a five-year warranty is of no value if the company folds in two. Will the company be around and supporting their product in three years when technology has changed?This is the focus of the book, in the area of digital products what produces the momentum that makes consumers purchase the particular vendor's product? The authors conclude that what makes consumers purchase and companies survive in this industry is momentum. And momentum is a function of Mass, Speed, and Direction. A digital company must create mass, develop speed, and set direction.Customers buy from a company that is perceived to have momentum because they have a fear of ending up with a product that is no longer supported or completely orphaned as a competitor establishes itself as the industry standard. Part of the problem is the conception that digital products are never finished. There is always an update, patch, add-on or newer version of almost any software or hardware that has any sort of digital component. So, how do you develop and use momentum so that the consumer believes they can confidently purchase your product without fear?The evaluation of a digital product for most consumers is evaluated differently from non-digital products. For non-digital products the consumer has traditionally focused on the features of the product. For digital products the consumer typically evaluates a product not by the features but by how it will make their life easier, more productive, or more entertaining.The major part of the book discusses the six forces of differentiation and the effect they have on the purchasing decision. For each one of them the authors show how to create them and use them to create momentum. An excellent book on the unique marketing factors of digital products it is a highly recommended read for anyone manufacturing or selling digital products of any kind.